If you used Workstation Pro years ago when it cost real money, searching for it again now makes sense given how much noise there's been about Broadcom's VMware pricing changes. The short version is personal use is currently free, which is a meaningful shift from the paid-license era most long-time users remember. This page has the current download and explains the licensing terms so there's no surprise at activation.
Personal Use vs Commercial Licensing
Since Broadcom's 2024 licensing overhaul, Workstation Pro is free for personal, non-commercial use on both Windows and Linux hosts, but businesses still need a paid commercial license to use it legally. You'll register with a Broadcom account during activation even for the free tier.
The Linux build requires kernel headers matching your running kernel to compile its driver modules, which trips up users on rolling-release distros after a kernel update.
Who ends up using VMware Workstation Pro
IT professionals testing operating systems, developers building cross-platform software, and security researchers running isolated environments all rely on Workstation Pro.
- Developers testing an application across multiple Windows and Linux versions at once
- IT admins building and snapshotting virtual machines before rolling out changes
- Security researchers running malware or untrusted software in an isolated sandbox
Before you install
A couple of things worth knowing about VMware Workstation Pro before you request the link: it covers Windows and Linux, so grab the build that matches the machine you're setting up. And on pricing, VMware Workstation Pro is free to use outright — there's no paid tier hiding behind it, so what you install is the whole app. It's developed and maintained by Broadcom (VMware).
System requirements
- WindowsWindows 10 or 11 (64-bit); older 7/8.1 builds usually still run but no longer get official support
- Linuxmost current 64-bit distributions; look for a native .deb/.rpm/AppImage or a package in your distro's own repository
Heavier workloads (large files, high-res media, big projects) will naturally want more RAM and a faster CPU/GPU than the bare minimum.
Quick steps
- Create or sign into a Broadcom account when prompted at download
- Install and select the free personal-use license during activation
- Create your first virtual machine and allocate CPU cores and RAM before installing a guest OS
VMware Workstation Pro: the honest trade-offs
- Snapshots let you save and instantly revert a VM's exact state
- Supports running many VMs simultaneously with fine-grained resource control
- Now free for personal use after Broadcom's 2024 licensing change
- No macOS host support at all, unlike VMware Fusion
- Nested virtualization and 3D graphics performance lag behind newer hypervisors
The installer here is pulled from Broadcom's official VMware distribution, matching the build available through their customer portal.
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Keeping VMware Workstation Pro up to date
VMware Workstation Pro usually has a built-in updater or store-based auto-update (Microsoft Store / Mac App Store / Play Store, depending on platform); if you installed it manually, re-downloading the current build from the official source is the fallback. Sticking to the developer's own distribution channel — which is what this page links to — means you're never stuck on an old build with unpatched bugs just because a mirror site stopped updating its copy.
Features, install steps, alternatives and more detail live on the main VMware Workstation Pro page.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a license key for personal use?
You still activate an account-based free license through Broadcom, but no paid key or credit card is required for non-commercial use.
Can Workstation Pro run on a Mac?
No, Workstation Pro only supports Windows and Linux hosts; Mac users need VMware Fusion instead.
